VCAT rejects proposed children’s farm and function centre in Connewarre

THE Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) has upheld a decision of the City of Greater Geelong council to refuse a permit to build a children’s farm, restaurant and function centre at Lings Road in Connewarre.

The applicant had applied for a permit to the Council to develop the land at Lings Road, near Barown Heads.

The proposal, first lodged with council in 2018, included a restaurant with a capacity of 80 people, a children’s farm that would operate with the restaurant with a capacity for 40 people, which would operate during the day.

The proposal also included a separate function centre that would operate at night.

The city’s planning officers recommended the granting of a permit, however councillors decided to refuse a permit in November 2022.

The applicant applied to VCAT for a review of the decision.

The council argued before VCAT that the site was not suitable for tourism land use and would compromise the agricultural productivity of the land.

Several residents who lived nearby also opposed the granting of a planning permit. Many of those residents owned houses at the Thirteenth Beach Golf Links Estate, which is next to the proposed site of the development.

VCAT Mmmber Michael Deidun said that the Tourism in Rural Areas policy was relevant and supported tourism development in rural areas.

However, he said that while the proposed children’s farm and accompanying restaurant were tourism facilities, “the proposed Function centre on the review site is not a tourism facility”.

Mr Deidun said the proposed structures would impact on the rural landscape, particularly as an extensive acoustic fence was required.

“The applicant has failed to put [before VCAT] a workable method by which dust from Lings Road could be suppressed, and avoid what would otherwise be an unreasonable amenity impact on the nearby residents,” Mr Deidun said.

He also said that there would be “unacceptable acoustic impacts on the dwellings within the Thirteenth Beach Golf Links Estate from music noise associated with the Function centre, patron noise and passing traffic during the night period”.